Neil Young to Debut 'PonoPlayer' High-Definition iPod Competitor This Week

[samcraig]

Many are missing the point. This is a niche product. Heck - it's being sold on Kickstarter.

Those who ARE into high quality audio are the target market. And as for price points - do I think it's high? Perhaps. But people shell out tons for a lot of BOSE's products which aren't actually all that better than some of the competition. Although BOSE *is* more mainstream now that it was several years ago when it was also pretty much niche.

I do think the more exciting thing here is the Pono Music Store.

 

[Hwthrn]

iRiver wants their triangles back!!!

 

[JAT]

Good luck Neil, you are going to need it.

Yep, I agree with everything but the headphones. I see people wearing real cans from time to time. Probably about the right percentage that could be "audiophiles" interested in this product. But it's completely not the right look, just plain silly. (the Pono, I mean)

 

[olowott]

sorry bro, it feels so late ..... well its world where anything can happen

that looks like something hard in my pocket which i don't think will be

 

[Renzatic]

Triangle Man, Triangle Man
Triangle Man hates Person Man
They have a fight, Triangle wins
Triangle Man

As of this moment, you have officially become the third best poster on Macrumors.

 

[NachoGrande]

why would you want something that is shaped like a triangle in your pocket instead of a slim, sleek iPhone,iPod.

 

[uknowimright]

I've seen some ridiculously priced audiophile level portable players that are quite ugly so this could fit in there

also not really sure it's portable in the sense that you will take it out on a busy street/commute but more like you can move about your house/apt/etc with it

 

[Rossatron]

Many are missing the point. This is a niche product. Heck - it's being sold on Kickstarter.

Those who ARE into high quality audio are the target market. And as for price points - do I think it's high? Perhaps. But people shell out tons for a lot of BOSE's products which aren't actually all that better than some of the competition. Although BOSE *is* more mainstream now that it was several years ago when it was also pretty much niche.

I do think the more exciting thing here is the Pono Music Store.

no, its a product no company is willing to fund, hence, it's on kickstart.

 

[derbothaus]

Many are missing the point. This is a niche product. Heck - it's being sold on Kickstarter.

Those who ARE into high quality audio are the target market. And as for price points - do I think it's high? Perhaps. But people shell out tons for a lot of BOSE's products which aren't actually all that better than some of the competition. Although BOSE *is* more mainstream now that it was several years ago when it was also pretty much niche.

I do think the more exciting thing here is the Pono Music Store.

No highs, no lows, it must be a Bose! I agree the music store is where it is at. I can already play the greatest formats on my computer all hooked up to a hifi way better than headphones I would wear around publicly. The player seems a bit unnecessary.
To get any benefit you would have to be OK with wearing $5000.00 headphones around the city. I'm not.

 

[kilcher]

...

 

[eyebex]

Hey hey, my my

Better to burn out than to fade away

 

[Msail30bay]

Oh boy! Look at the color choices………. wow!! Can you say: unattractive, ugly, lack of taste, lack of imagination/sense, etc. It's like Windows 8, what a horrible mess of colors and blocks. Both boring and dull.

 

[Lazy]

How much can even the greatest amp on earth help a lossy compression format sound better? This thing looks terrible in all aspects.

The point is it will support lossless formats. Certainly CD (44.1khz/16 bit) probably up to 96khz/24 bit and perhaps even 192khz/24 bit.

And the DAC will be much better than in an iPod.

There was a market for upgrading the DAC in some models of iPod classics. That upgrade was a few hundred dollars, and $400 is cheap by audiophile standards, so it might do Ok. Not as well as it would do if it weren't triangular though (WTF with that?) IMHO.

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I wonder if they plan on including high quality earphones with their high quality music player? I guess most people would use their own, but packing in cheap ones sends the wrong impression.

No way it will include headphones, for exactly the reason you give.

 

[Eauboy]

Are they also making buggy whips?

 

[Kid Red]

FAIL
Dumb design. It will stick out in my pocket and will be hard to view the screen when laying flat on the table. I don't want to be forced to turn it unnaturally sideways. I don't like holding my iphone sideways (except for video).

Who buys MP3 players anymore? Everyone uses their phone now. Their phone has a music store and internet radio. I don't see a market for this device. 4 years ago, maybe.

 

[Lazy]

Oh boy! Look at the color choices………. wow!! Can you say: unattractive, ugly, lack of taste, lack of imagination/sense, etc. It's like Windows 8, what a horrible mess of colors and blocks. Both boring and dull.

Everything about the design looks like it's meant for listening with one's eyes closed.

 

[uknowimright]

if you think of this as a portable player that's portable within your living domain, then the triangle design isn't that crazy, when you lay it on a table you could see the screen and access the buttons without needing to pick up and fiddle with it

but I'm just guessing here

 

[nutmac]

First of all, a stupid name. You don't name a product to sound like an X-rated product, unless your product is an X-rated product.

Satisfying the needs of audiophiles is a lucrative and valid market if done right. So let's see if PonoPlayer meets their needs:

• Audio quality: PonoPlayer will playback lossless audio codec that aims to be in the same level as DVD-Audio and SACD. While that is all good stuff, the downside is proprietary nature of this codec.
• Storage: 128GB is not adequate for audiophiles. At the very least, offer 256GB as an option or provide memory card slot for expansion.
• Ecosystem: PonoMusic is the PC/Mac app that will let one purchase and sync music into PonoPlayer. If it wants any degree of success, it MUST offer subscription based system so that buyers are not forced to spend money re-purchasing their music library (especially since the format will be proprietary).

 

[violst]

This product is way late to the game. The standalone MP3 player is on its way out.

 

[globalist]

Musician Neil Young, who has also dabbled in songwriting and directing,

Am I the only one who was like "WTF" when I read this part? Isn't it akin to saying something like "Steve Jobs, who has also dabbled in computer design and programming"... ?

 

[The-Pro]

nothing better than a triangular thing in ur pocket. That is the stupidest design for a music player ever

 

[iHEARTcartoons]

What market does this thing really fit into and be viable? This looks like an epic fail.

 

[locust76]

Unpopular Opinion Puffin here:

I hope this thing is successful, somewhat, so that Apple realizes that anything less than 64 GB is too damn little.

 

[bdkennedy1]

Apple Lossless already offers a 24/96 bitrate. All they have to do is turn it on and this guy is out of business.

 

[Mike MA]

Is he aware of the current smart phone and tablet generations? iPod and other's share is declining rapidly.